Bay of Islands Fishing Report 8Feb24

Luke Wiseman with a 52kg Yellowfin Tuna, caught solo.

It was a busy Waitangi Day on the water and I was kept busy weighing fish, a yellowfin tuna and 3 striped marlin during the afternoon. And three fish were first’s for small boats and only one was weighed for the competition. The snapper and kingfish seem a little more difficult to find but out deeper has worked for me and reports are of good catches in shallow.

The Pacific Motor Group Eldorado 2024 hosted by the Bay of Islands Swordfish Club was a huge success with 31 teams and 111 anglers entered for the 3 days of competition. And what a tournament it was both weather and fishing wise. The tournament saw 55 striped marlin tagged and released, 4 weighed marlin and 1 tuna weighed.

Prizegiving list as follows;
Heaviest other species – Petra Bonner, 47.9kg Yellowfin
1st billfish of tournament – Dave Stephenson aboard Family Jewels
Last Billfish of the tournament – Kelly Troughton, Ruckus
Deck Hand most meritorious effort – Steve Crockatt, Miss Brett
Lady angler most points – Brenda Croft, Orion
Biggest f**k up of the tournament – Trevor Berthold, Connermara
Junior Angler most points – Keisha Dempster, Odyssey
Angler heaviest Billfish – Cameron Nicol, Outer Banks
Heaviest striped marlin – Shane Lye, Raptor
NZ Angler Highest Scoring – John Blumenthal, Defiance
Runner up Team most points – Orion, 4500 points
Winning team most points – Defiance – 7700 points
Winning skipper most points – Guy Sutherland, Defiance
Come into the shop to check out the latest in gear, get your bait, ice and berley, and most importantly, some genuine intel! We are open from 8.00am to 5pm, everyday. As always, if you urgently need some supplies after hours just give me a call.